I would like to brew some lagers but I am reluctant to do so because the yeast-pitching and fermentation range is considerably lower than an ale; thus requiring additional cooling equipment. I welcome suggestions on the most economical approach to fermenting at lower temperatures.
There are a number of lager yeasts that can produce good lagers at rooms temp. Saflager 34/70 2orks particularly well in that regard. It’s still a good idea to lager the beer as cold as you can get it post fermentation.
Brew a lager recipe, use W-34/70 dry yeast (Wyeast 2007 works as well if you prefer liquid yeast), pitch at lager rates, and ferment at your usual ale temps. Bottle or keg as usual. If bottling, let them carbonate at room temp for 3-4 weeks (check a sample to make sure it has hit it’s desired carbonation). If kegging, carbonate per your usual procedure. Then store your packaged beer under refrigeration for 2-6 weeks to “lager” in the final package.
There are many yeast strains (not just the ones I listed) that will make a beer that will pass for a “lager-style” beer even when fermented at warmer temps. And by “pass” I mean you wouldn’t suspect that it’s not a lager if someone handed you a cold one without telling you. Cold-conditioning after fermentation will certainly help if you can do it.
People also pressure ferment to limit ester production.
that’s what i came here to mention, if you can use an ice bucket to keep temps around 50F just for the first 24 hours after pitching, then leave it alone and let it slowly warm up over the next 24 or 48 hours that has definitely resulted in decent lagers for me.
i have a 50-55F garage from dec to march though, so i just brew lagers in winter. this could also work for you potentially.
like denny said, a lot of people have had good outcomes with just using certain lager yeasts at various ale temps.
There are also Kveik yeasts that work well for pseudo lagers. Lutra from Omega Yeast and Oslo from Bootleg Biology come to mind. Like Denny suggested 34/70 has worked well for me too.
Wyeast claims their 2124 is a good yeast for a Common beer, and it will ferment nicely at 65 -68F.
Another one is 2112, producing brilliant clear, malty beers at 65F.
w34/70 all the way
I’ve used W34/70 and S-189 at 65°F with great results.
I use a swamp cooler. Several years ago I got the temperature below 60F by using plenty of ice jugs. But condensation formed on the outside of the fermenter bucket and ruined the fermometer. These LCD stick-on thermometers are water resistant but not water-proof. If using this cooling method, I would recommend using some other method of measuring the temperature.
You might want to read this. Yes, a single data point. But still valid.
Give 34/70 a try. Ferment it in the coolest place you have. You’ll be pleased with the result.
If you can find it, Wyeast pacman makes a good pseudo lager at 70f.